Sunday's letters: Recognizing socialism-plus

Sunday

Oct 28, 2012 at 12:01 AM

As I drove to work recently, I heard an old song titled “Do You Remember These?” Being a baby boomer, I remembered them all, from flypaper, penny loafers, the Hit Parade and the Sadie Hawkins Dance to the crinoline petticoats, Studebakers and getting your tonsils taken out.

As I drove to work recently, I heard an old song titled “Do You Remember These?” Being a baby boomer, I remembered them all, from flypaper, penny loafers, the Hit Parade and the Sadie Hawkins Dance to the crinoline petticoats, Studebakers and getting your tonsils taken out.It made me realize how fortunate I was to have grown up then, when we could ride our bikes for miles, use the streets to play hopscotch, walk safely to school and play until 10 o’clock every night. I can only remember one friend who was being raised only by his mother; everyone else had a mother and father. Needless to say, things have changed!Our fathers had volunteered to risk their lives to save America, and when they succeeded, they were proud of what they had done. Many had lived through the Depression, and none wanted to go back to that. They were truly the greatest generation, and their sacrifices gave us, the baby boomers, an opportunity for a wonderful life. If they failed at anything, it might have been that they did not teach us what they had fought for, to keep America free.Our lives were so full of opportunities that time flew by without us ever thinking that things could change, but change they did. Barack Obama told us he planned to fundamentally change America in 2008, but we didn’t understand what he meant until now.Our mothers and fathers would have recognized socialism-plus as an unacceptable challenge to American freedoms. I believe they are counting on us to save America this time, and since I plan to see both my mother and father in heaven one day, I know I had better do my best.Jenneane Y. FromanColumbus, N.C.

I’m responding to Ron Romine’s op-ed column in Thursday’s paper concerning the voter ID bill. I never cease to be amazed by the shallow thinking and spinning of these left-wing people. There are some things Mr. Romine needs to answer and face up to.In real life, how is proving who you are a suppression? If you go to the store and write a check, you have to prove who you are with ID. In most stores, if you use your credit card you have to prove who you are. I know of individuals who have DMV ID cards to prove who they are even though they aren’t able to drive. So, Mr. Romine, what’s the big deal?Could it be that those who oppose proving who you are in order to vote are afraid some of their supporters might get caught voting twice? It has happened. Could it be some of their supporters won’t be able to “come back from the grave” and vote? It has happened. Or could it be they are afraid of illegal immigrants not being able to vote? That also has happened. Why are the Ron Romines of the country so opposed to proving who you are in order to be able to vote? Just what is the real reason?I have voted in every election to my knowledge since 1962 after returning from my tour of duty overseas in the Army. In all of those years, I never felt oppressed by proving who I am. Proving who you are is not oppression — it is good sense.Come on, Mr. Romine, get out of your make-believe world and face reality. Proving who you are has been around a long time in other areas of our society. So why not in regard to voting?Jerry E. CraftWoodruff

I’m a moderate independent in favor of small, efficient government, low taxes and reasonable regulation. I analyze candidates, study the facts and vote my conclusions — hard this year due to misleading information.The federal government and the budget are bloated. I believed George W. Bush would reduce both since we had a balanced budget the year before he took office. Unfortunately, he grew the federal government, increased spending and reduced taxes, resulting in deficits that drove the debt to record levels. Deregulation and poor enforcement led to a financial catastrophe that threatened our banking system.President Barack Obama inherited an impossible task. The economy was on the brink of collapse. Federal revenues were going down due to falling incomes and job losses while expenses were going up due to unfunded wars and unsustainable entitlement programs. The financial industry was floundering and the automakers were failing. We were on the verge of another Great Depression.None of this was Obama’s fault. While I don’t agree with all of the things he did, the economy is growing, stocks have recovered, and job growth has been steady. I haven’t seen anything in the Republican platform that is different from the Bush policies that caused our problems, so I will vote to give the president a chance to continue and right the ship.Regardless of the winner, tough decisions have to be made and compromises will be required. “We the people” must demand that our leaders find solutions. They can’t put things off until the next election again.Americans have always risen to meet real challenges to our national security, and our national debt is just such a challenge. We will all have to sacrifice some for the greater good, even the rich! Tell our leaders to solve this now before it’s too late.Tom DavisInman

I read a mailer from incumbent state Rep. Mike Forrester for the House District I live in, touting his “fight against the Obama agenda.” Apparently, Mr. Forrester has adopted the Barack Obama strategy — if you say it enough times, people will believe it. Time for a little fact checking:In May 2011, Forrester killed a S.C. school choice bill that would have given families the freedom to determine which schools best serve their children. In April 2009, Obama signed a bill that killed a D.C. school voucher program, which served the very low-income children in that area.Forrester voted for the I-95 Corridor Authority Act, which would have created a needless government bureaucracy in South Carolina with hundreds of state employees — paid for by our tax dollars. Obama’s administration has grown government at the expense of the private sector and taxpayers.Forrester voted to raid the insurance trust fund of almost $37 million to pay for the budget gap instead of cutting government spending. Obama raided Medicare by $716 billion to pay for Obamacare.Forrester voted against a three-day waiting period before voting on the budget. After promising that all bills would be online for five days, Obama broke that promise.Forrester voted to raise the cigarette tax. We all know we’ve been burdened with more taxes during Obama’s reign.Forrester even collaborated with Obama when he voted to force then-Gov. Mark Sanford to take the $700 million in stimulus funds.Mr. Forrester is a fine individual — but his voting record aligns more closely with the Obama agenda than against it. I urge my community to vote for petition candidate Gaye Holt, and retire Forrester and Obama on the same day.

Brian AdamsSpartanburg

I would like to commend recent letters writers Kathy Mahaffey and Keith Isler as well as the Herald-Journal for the recent dignified and thoughtful exchange on the subject of term limits.Unfortunately, there now exists a glaring and obvious circumstance that overwhelmingly supports term limits.Sen. Jake Knotts, a Republican from Lexington County, has been a member of the General Assembly since 1995. During the past year, he has, by virtue of his seniority, been able to single-handedly thwart the will of the majority of the populace and the General Assembly on two key issues: (1) restructuring and establishment of the Department of Administration, and (2) approval of more than 200 candidates whose filings had been disallowed by an ambiguous and contradictory statute.If Mr. Knotts were motivated by a genuine belief that his actions were in the best interests of the people of South Carolina, or at least the people of Lexington County, that would be acceptable. However, his goal was no better than to spite our minority female governor, whom he publicly referred to as a “raghead.”Perhaps in 1995 Mr. Knots was motivated by a sense of duty that called him to make the many sacrifices required of a sincere public servant. He has apparently become victim to the intoxication and corruption that comes with the power of office.

To paraphrase Mothers Against Drunk Driving, friends should not let friends run for a third term.We must all acquaint ourselves with and consider the petition candidates so as to get fresh perspective in our General Assembly. It’s the least we can do to help Mr. Knotts and his fellow career politicians recover from their awful addiction to power and spending.Jody TraywickSpartanburg

A few years ago, our family encountered a roadblock pertaining to a scholarship earned by one of our children. My husband and I attempted to resolve the issue by contacting the appropriate state agency ourselves. We soon realized we needed help to resolve the situation.We sought the assistance of numerous community leaders and elected officials. Things quickly turned around when we met state Rep. Mike Forrester. We shared the details of the situation with Mr. Forrester, and he took action immediately. He was the advocate we needed. He contacted the state agency as well as other state officials. He continued to persevere and work on our behalf until the problem was resolved.We are fortunate to have someone who is dedicated to doing the right thing to serve on our behalf in our state government. If you want a person of character and integrity to represent you, I would encourage you to vote Nov. 6 for Mike Forrester for re-election to the S.C. House of Representatives.

Katie PackRoebuck

Never miss a story

Choose the plan that's right for you.
Digital access or digital and print delivery.